The Kingdom Of Hearts
by kristoferrobbin
Summary: AU. Emma Swan tells the tragic story of how she met the love of her life, Regina Mills, to her nine year old granddaughter. Rated T for future chapters. No curse. Eventual SwanQueen. Read & Review please.
1. Night Of Fate

**A/N: The song being played is called Musique Pour La Tristesse De Xion by Yoko Shimomura. I advise that you listen to the song while reading the story flashback.**

"Grammy, can you tell me the story again?" the small brunette asked.

"Again, Reggie?"

"Please Grammy? I wanna here the story again!" The old woman sighed.

"But I tell you the story every time I see you, don't you want to hear a different story this time?" Reggie jumped from her place on the burgundy carpet onto her grandmother's lap, nestling into the old woman's long white hair.

"Nuh-uh, I wanna hear the story about my other Grammy." a warm chuckle bubbled up from the grandmother's chest.

"Alright, alright. I'll tell it again. Did you know this is the story of the woman you were named after?" The small girl frowned.

"You tell me every time you tell the story, Grammy. 'You were named after the love of my life, Regina Mills.' I know already, will you just tell me the story now?" Reggie huffed.

"I'm getting there, kid, hold your horses."

_52 Years Ago_

_I had never heard anything so beautiful in all my life. It was like I had never lived at all until that moment, where this melodically beautiful piece was touching the very core of my being. _

_I had never been very fond of instrumentals, but if I could've heard it played like she had played it then, I would've listened to them until my dying day. _

_Back then I was very brash, so of course I rushed in to see the pianist. And there she sat. Short brown hair mussed in every direction, her back rigid, and her arms moving spontaneously as her fingers danced wildly across the keys. _

_I couldn't understand for the life of me why there was a white grand piano in the center of an abandoned warehouse, and I couldn't understand even more why she was there at 2 am. _

_But I couldn't have cared less, because more than anything, I thank god that she was. Standing in the shadows of the doorway, I watched her play like she was Beethoven himself. It was so amazing, how such a small fragile woman could play something so intricate. _

_She was wearing a beat-up hospital gown, her feet bare. Was she homeless? Had she broke out of a hospital? An asylum? Where was she from? _

_And why wasn't she a billionaire composer in some luxury mansion? I had so many questions, but I didn't want her to stop playing. Quiet sobs started to echo throughout the abandoned warehouse, blending in with the notes from the piano. _

_She was . . . Crying. Her body began to shake as she moved furiously, now striking the keys harder. My god, it was the most heart felt thing I ever did see. _

_I slowly stepped towards her, trying with all my might not to make a sound, to not cry along with her. At that moment, I vowed to find out everything I could about this girl. _

_No, she was more than a girl, a young woman? She was definitely younger than myself. I was nearly right behind her now. _

_She was so caught up in playing that she hadn't heard or felt me move at all. I could see her hands now, in the dim light. _

_Lithe fingers swam across each key, I could barely make out each movement because it was so fast and precise. The melody began to slowly fade out now. _

"_Please don't stop playing." I whispered. She nearly jumped ten feet in the air. The woman scurried off the piano bench, turning to face me. _

"_Who are you?" she asked. Her face held tear tracks, making lines down her dirt stained face. She looked a mess, but somehow I still found her to be breathtaking. "My name's Emma. I didn't mean to scare you, but you just play so beautifully." I couldn't make out every detail of her face, being that the only light was that from the moon shining through the wholes in the roof. But her eyes . . . . I could see her eyes. They were big and brown, with more emotion than any creature to ever walk the planet. The woman slowly backed away, turning to run before I could grab her. _

"_Wait! Please, tell me your name!" I yelled. But she had already disappeared into the darkness._


	2. Tension Rising

"Is this the part where you meet her again Grammy?" Reggie questioned, grinning from ear to ear.

"Do you wanna hear the story or not?"

"I do, I do!"

"Then stop interrupting! Now, as I was saying . . . ."

_52 Years Ago_

_It was my first day at Mr. Gold's Asylum For Women, and I had already wanted to quit. The place was a dump and smelled of sour milk and gym socks, and the food was atrocious._

_I could've sworn I had seen the meatloaf I ordered for lunch move. If I had had the liberty to quit, I would have in a heartbeat. _

_But money was tight, and I needed something to get me by. So, I decided to make the best of it. First thing I had to do was go see Mr. Gold and check in. _

_Sounded easy enough, right? Wrong. It took me twenty minutes to find his office because all of the guards were too busy hooking up with each other to answer my questions! _

_Well, at least I got a tour of the place. My first observation was right, it was definitely a dump. But mostly, while I was on my search for Mr. Gold's office, I was trying to see if I'd run into a short-haired brunette. _

_Of course, I was looking for my mystery girl from the night before. I hadn't stopped thinking about her since the second she ran off. The craziest part of it was, I didn't even know her name, but I cared so much about her. _

_I had to find her, even if it took searching through all of Boston. Hell, I would've searched all of Massachusetts for her! *chuckle* Anyway, when I finally found Mr. Gold's office, I was ten minutes late for my meeting. _

"_Morning, dearie. Finally decided to show up, I see." I swear, he sounded like a creepy leprechaun. His shaggy shoulder-length hair all in his face, nose poking out like Pinocchio. All in all, he was kind of weird looking. But what was really surprising was the fact that his office was spotless. Clean, big, and elegant. Talk about saving the load for yourself. _

"_Sorry, I got lost." I told him. _

"_It's quite fine. But are you somewhat acquainted with the asylum now?" _

"_Somewhat." _

"_Good. Here's your rounds chart. It has a list of the women that you'll be attending to." He'd handed me a brown clipboard with a sheet of paper, it had seven names and room numbers. I remember thinking how interesting it would be to find out all of these stories from these seven different women. _

"_Great, thanks." _

"_Well you better get started, they're all chatters. Except for the last one, she's a real special case. Might want to watch out for her, dearie. Might get you in your sleep." He had the nerve to smile. What on earth was funny about that? _

"_Um . . ." _

"_Just a joke, I promise. You might want to go to the center now, it's relax time for the girls. That way you can meet them all at once." _

"_Okay, thanks." I high-tailed my ass-I mean butt, out of there. Mr. Gold really gave me the creeps. Luckily, the center was easier to find than his office. A group of six girls sat spread out around the room on dingy brown couches and half broken chairs. According to my chart, one had been missing. _

"_Who're you?" She was ballsy, I could tell. Blonde, clearly the oldest and the leader of the group. _

"_I'm Emma Swan, the new nurse." _

"_So they finally got rid of Betsy." She smiled at me in a skeevish, perverted way. Why were the people there so creepy? Maybe because it was an asylum. _

"_Um, who's Betsy?" They all looked at each other then, and I could tell that they all knew something important that I didn't. _

"_They didn't tell you?" _

"_No, who was she?" _

"_She was the last nurse. She brought Regina's mother here to talk to her, thought it would do her some good. When Betsy went to sleep, Regina set her hair on fire. Poor dear got 3__rd__ degree burns." At first I thought that they were just screwing with me, but then I noticed the serious look on all of their faces. It was no joke. These women were crazy. I tried to pick out which one was this 'Regina' woman. _

"_Don't worry dear, she's not in here. We're the good girls." I remember rolling my eyes at that. _

"_What're all of your names?" The oldest woman still spoke first. "I'm Lefty, this is Red, Snow, Abby, Bella and Ella." She'd pointed to them as she said their names. Three blondes and three brunettes. _

"_Those are your nicknames I presume." _

"_Well of course, can't go walking around with the names society gave us." What a drama queen, I had thought. _

"_Right, well where is Regina? Mr. Gold said to make sure I meet all of you."_

"_She'll be joining us shortly, she's always fashionably late. Why don't you take a seat?" It was pretty obvious at that point that she'd been hitting on me, and I couldn't say that I wasn't flattered. She was attractive, but crazy. I made sure to sit as far away from them all as possible, which meant sitting on a wooden chair that gave my ass- I mean butt, splinters. _

"_So, what's everyone's story?" No answers. _

"_Okaaaay, Red, why don't you tell me about yourself?" This one was tall, one of the brunettes. Wore lots of make-up, kind of looked like a pin-up girl. She smirked. _

"_Hun, I don't think now's a good time for us to be rehashing all of our sob stories." _

"_And why's that?" The small blonde, Ella, spoke up this time. _

"_Because you'd be out that door in less than five minutes." They were testing me, seeing how much I could take._

"You know Reggie, your dad doesn't like when I tell you this part of the story." Emma said.

"Oh come on Grammy, you can't stop now! And besides, I've heard it already, and if I'm gonna be a homicide detective one day I gotta be able to handle it!"

"Alright, but if he walks in, I'm snitching on you."

"Okay, okay, just continue the story!"

"_Try me." They all looked to a small brunette with a pixie cut. Snow was her name. She seemed agitated. _

"_Why is my story always the deal breaker?" _

"_Because you're the youngest, Dear. Now go on, tell her." It was becoming clear to me then that these girls did everything that Lefty said. It made me curious about her. What had she done that was so terrible to make all of them listen to her? _

"_I murdered my ex-boyfriend." Didn't sound too crazy . . . . _

"_Then shouldn't you be in prison?" _

"_Before I . . . before I killed him, I had delusions that he murdered my mother. So I killed him . . . And his parents, and I took pictures. I posted them around my old town." Yep, crazy, definitely crazy. And you know what? She was smiling! _

"_Oh . . . Um, that's very . . . Uh, wow." Me. Speechless. Doesn't happen anymore, now does it? _

"_See, told you you couldn't take it." Ella, she thought I was weak, well she was dead wrong. _

"_No, I'm good. I just . . . It took me off guard, but now that I had the deal breaker I'm ready for them all." _

"_Who're you?" Everyone had looked up past me. The special guest had finally arrived. It was time to meet Regina. I prayed that she'd like me, and that she wouldn't set my hair on fire in my sleep. I faced her, expecting to see . . . . Well I don't exactly know what I was expecting to see. I do know, however, that I wasn't expecting to see __**her. **_

"_You!"_


	3. The Other Promise

_She'd glared at me then. I swear, I thought her big brown eyes were going to burn a whole in my face. _

"_What are you doing here?" She sneered. _

"_You two know each other?" Lefty, ever the curious leader. _

"_Not necessarily." I had told her, and I wasn't lying. I didn't even know her name. Before I could say anything else to her she walked off. I wasn't going to let her get away that time, so I followed her down the hallway. _

"_Hey! Wait up!"_

"_Leave me alone!" _

"_Please, I just want to talk to you!" I grabbed her by the elbow and swung her around. She looked like she was going to hit me. _

"_Let go of me." Her voice was mean and harsh. _

"_Just relax, okay? I just want to talk to you, that's it." _

"_Why? Why the hell do you want to talk to me so badly?" I finally saw it then, the vulnerability in her eyes. She looked angry, sure, but there was something else. Her eyes glistened like she was going to cry. _

"_Why did you run away from me last night? Why do you keep running away from me?" I took a long hard look at her face. I could see her face clearly then, not like the night before. The smudges of dirt and traces of tears were now gone. She was so beautiful, like no person I had ever seen before. Big brown eyes, full red lips, which held a small scar on the right side of her top lip. I had wondered how she had gotten it. "Just leave me alone." "I can't do that." _

"_Why not? You don't even know me!"_

"_I just can't, okay? I can't do that." She stared into my eyes, like she was trying to decide something. _

"_What do you want?" The halls started to fill with nurses then. _

"_Is there somewhere that we can talk in private?" She nodded. _

"_Follow me." She had led me up to the roof. The sun shined bright in the sky, clear as day. We sat on one of the plumbing pipes and stared out at the city below. _

"_So what do you want?" She asked me again. I didn't understand why she thought that I had wanted something from her. _

"_I don't want anything."_

"_You must want something, why else would you would be so persistent?"_

"_The only thing I want is to know you. No hidden agendas, that's it." _

"_And why should I believe anything you say?" She looked at me with that deep stare again. It was scary yet enchanting. _

"_To be honest, I don't know. I don't know why you should believe me or trust me. But I swear I'm not trying to screw you over or get you into any trouble."_

"_Then why? Why do you need to know me so badly?" _

"_Because last night I felt something that I haven't felt in years. When I heard you play, it just . . . I don't know, it just changed something in me. I know it sounds stupid, but I don't know how to say it any other way. You make me feel things that I've never felt for anyone else, and I don't even know you. It's crazy, and I don't understand it at all, but that's why I can't just leave you alone." There was a hint of a smile on her lips. _

"_Emma," I smiled at her then. _

"_Your name is Emma, right?" She had remembered. _

"_Yeah, Emma Swan." _

"_Well, Miss Swan, I still don't trust you." _

"_Okay, that's fine, but at least let me try?" _

"_And why should I?" She was a tough cookie, and I knew that it would be a long while before I did actually gain her trust. _

"_Because I care enough to make an effort." _

"_. . . . . Regina Mills." Her name. That was her way of letting me know that she was giving me a chance, no matter how small that chance was. _

"_Well it's nice to meet you Regina Mills." I think I smiled the biggest smile I ever had in that moment. _

"_Yes, I suppose it is." _

"_Wow, you're so modest." _

"_You wish." Her eyes twinkled as she had smirked at me. _

"_Actually, speaking of modesty and wishes, what's up with the playing piano in abandoned warehouses?" _

"_What does that have to do with modesty and wishes?"_

"_I was wondering why you would play where no one would hear you, which is modesty, and I wish that I could hear you play again." _

"_I appreciate the compliment Miss Swan, but I'm going to have to decline." _

"_What? Why?" _

"_It's not a show, it's supposed to be private, just for me. I won't let you take that from me." It was strange, how she'd kept thinking that I was there to take something from her, to ruin her. It made me even more curious about her, who Regina Mills really was. _

"_I'm not trying to take anything from you, I just . . . I like to hear you play."_

"_My answer is no." _

"_Oh come on! That is total crap." _

"_No it's not, it's my time. My sanctuary, the only real peace that I get in this god forsaken world." A dark look had clouded her eyes, like she was remembering a terrible memory. "Okay, how about if I help you?" Glaring, lots of glaring on her end. _

"_I did not ask, nor do I need your help Miss Swan."_

"_It must be hard to sneak out every night, and dangerous too. I mean really, sneaking out in the middle of the night in Boston? You could get hurt." _

"_What are you suggesting?"_

"_I'm suggesting that if you agree to let me hear you play, I will help you get in and out every night. I'll also make sure you're safe."_

"_Safe?"_

"_Oh yeah, trust me. I was a bounty hunter before this, and the things I've seen in Boston would make a grown man cry." Regina still didn't want to trust me, I knew that much. She thought that I would use her in some way, hurt her. But she was wrong, so very wrong. _

"_So let me get this straight, you're saying that if I agree to let you hear me play you'll help me sneak out whenever I want, and make sure that I'm safe?" _

"_Yes, that is exactly what I'm saying." Regina tried her hardest not to smile. _

"_My safety concerns you because . . . . ." _

"_Because you concern me, Regina. Whether you like it or not, I have made you a concern of mine." Had that been the hint of smirk I saw? To this day I still think I won her over with that line, even if she hadn't said it then. "Do you expect my gratitude, Miss Swan? That I'll simply fall at your knees because you've said that I concern you?"_

"_Why are you so complicated? Why can't you just accept what I'm saying?"_

"_If you can't handle me then by all means, please make a direct exit from my life." _

"_Hold on a second there kid, I'm not going anywhere. You may think that your hard ass façade is working for you, but it's not gonna work with me. I don't buy that for a second." " . . . . .I'm not a kid." Clearly not. _

"_What are you, like nineteen?"_

"_I'm twenty-one!" _

"_Well, you're a kid to me."_

"_And how old are you, Miss Swan?"_

"_I'm twenty-eight." The pouty face she made was so adorable. _

"_Wait, you're only twenty-one? What the hell are you doing in a place like this?"_

"_. . . . ." _

"_It's okay, you don't have to tell me, I was just curious." She looked at me with sad eyes. "I want tell you . . . In time." I had smiled for what must've been the fiftieth time that day. Regina was saying that one day, she would trust me._


End file.
